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BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN NJ: This Newark Trailblazer Paved the Way for an Excellent Education for All; Dr. E. Alma Flagg

Newark

"Dr. E. Alma Flagg Newark was lauded for her work on the Preservation Landmark Committee through which she fought to save iconic Newark landmarks including the Historic Plume House from being razed when transportation officials wanted to expand Interstate 280 according to veteran writer for The Star-Ledger Mr. Bob Braun said.

Newark Public Schools officials say Dr. Flagg was born September 16, 1918, in City Point, VA, to the late Hannibal Greene Williams and Caroline Moody Williams. She and her family, which included a sister and three brothers, later settled in Newark, NJ.

Dr. Flagg is a graduate of Newark's East Side High School, where she became a member of the National Honor Society, served as class poet and was voted most likely to succeed.

She continued her education at Newark State College, where Dr. Flagg earned her master's degree at Montclair State College and the doctor's degree from Columbia University, according to Newark Public Schools officials.

Her full-time teaching career began in Washington, DC, but she returned to Newark, in 1943 and taught and served as a school administrator in all wards of the city.

Officials say in 1964, Dr. Flagg was appointed principal of the integrated Hawkins Street School, where she became the first African-American woman to hold that distinction.

Her appointment as assistant superintendent in charge of curriculum services in 1967 was also a milestone. In 1985 a new elementary school was dedicated and named for her. Throughout her career, she has been a trailblazer.

"Dr. Flagg also is the author of three books of poetry, Twenty-one Poems, Feelings, Lines, Colors and Twenty More with Thought and Feeling. Her husband Thomas also was an educator and community activist in Newark. In 1985 a new elementary school, Dr. E. Alma Flagg School, was dedicated and named for her," according to veteran Star-Ledger writer Bob Braun.

Dr. E. Alma Flagg passed away on March 10, 2018.

**INFORMATION & IMAGE CREDIT:** Veteran Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Mr. Bob Braun, Newark Public School

**SPONSORS:** Metro Media Institute of Harrison, Nino's Pizza, Bergen Street Harrison NJ, and William Paterson University

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